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NUPI skole

Europe

Europe is changing – faced with financial crises, conflicts in its neighbourhood, war in Ukraine and power shifts on the international scene.

The EU is the dominant theme of NUPI’s research on Europe. Increased cooperation and the development of common institutions in Europe, EU foreign and defence policy, EU policy towards neighbouring states and adjacent regions, as well as the role of NATO in Europe are all important areas of study. Also central are questions of energy production in Europe and European energy security. Further priority areas for research at NUPI are the special position of Europe in Norwegian foreign policy, and the role of Europe in global geopolitics.
The image shows the front part of a grey navy vessel with seven men and one woman, all waving goodbye with their hats in their hands and waring navy blue uniform jackets, on deck. The boat is by the harbour, with other boats in the bacground. The flag og the German armed forces are behind them.
Research Project
2024 (Ongoing)

Living up to expectations? German political ambitions and military role in the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic

This project will contribute with knowledge and competence building about Germany’s evolving role as a military actor in the Baltic Sea and North Atlantic...

  • Defence
  • NATO
  • Cyber
  • Europe
  • Defence
  • NATO
  • Cyber
  • Europe
Event
09:00 - 10:30
NUPI
Engelsk
Event
09:00 - 10:30
NUPI
Engelsk
23. Apr 2024
Event
09:00 - 10:30
NUPI
Engelsk

How Hungary’s Democratic Decline Challenges Europe: A Civil Society Perspective

Which lessons can be learned from the situation in Hungary?

Event
10:00 - 11:30
NUPI
Engelsk
Event
10:00 - 11:30
NUPI
Engelsk
15. Apr 2024
Event
10:00 - 11:30
NUPI
Engelsk

Dealing with the challenge of Russian political warfare in the High North and in the Black Sea Region

How has Russia used other instruments of power than military ones in the context of the war in Ukraine?

Gine Rønne Bolling
Researchers

Gine Rønne Bolling

Junior Research Fellow

Gine R. Bolling is a junior research fellow in the Research group on security and defence. She graduated with an MSc in Politics of Conflict, Rig...

  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • NATO
  • Foreign policy
  • Europe
  • The Arctic
  • The Nordic countries
  • The EU
  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • NATO
  • Foreign policy
  • Europe
  • The Arctic
  • The Nordic countries
  • The EU
Articles
New research
Articles
New research

The Impact of the Ukraine Conflict on Norwegian Energy Dynamics

Norway should establish an energy policy that makes the green transition less painful. But while the Ukraine war has accelerated the EU's renewable ambitions, it may have also bought Norway more time to adapt, according to a new NUPI report.
  • Foreign policy
  • Europe
  • Russia and Eurasia
  • The Nordic countries
  • Conflict
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • The EU
Publications
Publications

Heimevernet og forsvaret av Norge: Skjerpet trusselbilde, uforløst potensial

I forsvaret av Norge er Heimevernet (HV) en vital del av grunnmuren. Styrken er Forsvarets største, geografisk mest spredte, og har samtidig ansvaret for det bredeste spekteret av oppgaver – i fred, krise og væpnet konflikt. HV leverer mye effekt – og har et uutnyttet potensial til å levere enda mer – for en relativt sett billig penge. Likevel har styrkens andel av Forsvarssektorens samlede driftsbudsjett falt, fra 3,8 % i 2015, til 3,1 % i budsjettet for 2024 – en mulig indikasjon på at styrken ikke er høyt prioritert når det norske forsvarsbudsjettet økes. Dette forskningsnotatet gir en kort beskrivelse HVs ansvar og oppgaver, og peker på utviklingstrekk som vil kunne påvirke disse i nær fremtid. Notatet illustrerer gapet mellom oppgavene, de vedtatte ambisjonene om videreutvikling, og ressursene som blir stilt til rådighet. I forlengelsen av dette svekkes hele samfunnets motstandsdyktighet i en tid hvor usikkerheten er større enn på lenge. Rapporten peker på fire konkrete tiltak som ved hjelp av en relativt moderat budsjettøkning vil kunne utnytte det latente utviklingspotensialet i HV-strukturen og gi betydelig og umiddelbar effekt på Forsvarets samlede evne til å levere beredskap og sikkerhet overalt, alltid – i fred, krise og i krig.

  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • Europe
  • The Nordic countries
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  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • Europe
  • The Nordic countries
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Research Project
2024 - 2027 (Ongoing)

Politics and Security in the Arctic (POPSARC)

At a time marked by major international turbulence – war in Europe, the breakdown of established diplomatic fora, the entry of new actors and stakeholders – there is an urgent need for also understand...

  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • NATO
  • Cyber
  • Regional integration
  • Diplomacy
  • Foreign policy
  • Europe
  • The Arctic
  • The Nordic countries
  • Governance
  • International organizations
  • Defence
  • Security policy
  • NATO
  • Cyber
  • Regional integration
  • Diplomacy
  • Foreign policy
  • Europe
  • The Arctic
  • The Nordic countries
  • Governance
  • International organizations
Publications
Publications
Scientific article

The defence of northern Europe: new opportunities, significant challenges

With Finland and Sweden joining NATO, the Nordics will be united for the first time in a military alliance encompassing not only northern Europe but also the broader transatlantic region. It will eventually fortify northern European security, but several obstacles must be overcome first. NATO has done a formidable job since 2014 in updating its defence plans, cumulating in the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area (DDA) family of plans approved in Vilnius 2023. Now Finland and Sweden need to be incorporated into these plans. A more challenging task is to implement NATO's New Force Model which is tremendously ambitious. Finland and Sweden's contributions will be important, but new investments must be made. NATO's Command Structure is yet to be fully reformed and fitted to the DDA. Joint Force Command Norfolk must urgently be staffed, without undue politicization in NATO. Nordic defence buildup can draw on regional cooperation in particular in five areas: in strengthening the area's command design through functional double-hatted headquarters; developing close air power cooperation through e.g. a Combined Joint Air Operations Centre; strengthening total defence cooperation across borders and expanding logistical infrastructure; establishing joint intelligence task forces; and joint training and exercises. The contributions of the United States and United Kingdom are indispensable when it comes to upholding the alliance's guarantee in northern Europe. The recent signing of Defense Cooperation Agreements between the US and the Nordics reinforces this—together with an increased presence of air and naval assets in the region. The same applies to the UK and the Joint Expeditionary Force which now has shifted its focus towards northern Europe. This engagement is a crucial addition to Nordic and NATO plans and activities in a period when growth in Nordic defence structures is occurring at a relatively slow pace. Only after the weaknesses and hurdles are addressed will the deterrence and defence of the region attain a fully credible level.

  • Defence
  • NATO
  • Europe
  • North America
  • The Nordic countries
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  • Defence
  • NATO
  • Europe
  • North America
  • The Nordic countries
Media
Media
Media

BRICS - en allianse mot verden

BRICS utvidast. Russland overtar samstundes leiarskapen i organisasjonen som utfordrar Vesten. Kva kan skje? NUPI-forskar Julie Wilhelmsen er ein av deltakarane i denne samtala i NRK-programmet Debatt i P2.

  • Security policy
  • Europe
  • Russia and Eurasia
  • The Middle East and North Africa
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • South and Central America
Screenshot 2024-02-27 at 13.07.04.png
  • Security policy
  • Europe
  • Russia and Eurasia
  • The Middle East and North Africa
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • South and Central America
Publications
Publications
Scientific article

Russian-speakers in Estonia: A Minority Without Agency

This article explores the conditions of the Russian-speaking minority in Estonia and sees the development of these conditions as a product of an interaction between the nationalizing state, the Russian-speaking minority, the minority’s “kin state”, and the international community; a framework dubbed the “quadratic nexus” by David J. Smith, expanding upon the theories of Rogers Brubaker. This article provides an updated empirical analysis of the impact of the quadratic dynamic in Estonian minority relations, as the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has shifted the balance of power between the agents in Smith’s nexus. The result of this shift is that the conditions of the Russian-speaking minority are now almost entirely decided by the nationalizing state, influenced by Russian aggression. The Russian Federation has made the protection of minority rights in Estonia increasingly difficult by pressuring the Estonian political elite to take an even more conservative stance on nationality policies as a response to the perceived threat from their neighbor in the east, in addition to reinforcing international indifference to minority rights in Estonia. This, combined with the preexisting socio-economic conditions of the Russian-speaking minority has led to the near total loss of the minority’s agency. The article is in Norwegian only.

  • Europe
  • Russia and Eurasia
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  • Europe
  • Russia and Eurasia
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